NXT LVL Up – August 2, 2024: What Effort Can Do
NXT LVL Up
Date: August 2, 2024
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Blake Howard, Byron Saxton
The show is changing in a good way as there is actual continuity week to week. Maybe not for every match, but I can go for two people arguing one week and wrestling the next. It’s certainly better than just having a one off match with no particular rhyme or reason and is long overdue. Let’s get to it.
Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.
Opening sequence.
Tatum Paxley vs. Tyra Mae Steele
Steele easily wrestles her down to start and grabs a waistlock with Paxley having to go to the ropes for the break. A rollup out of the corner gives Steele two but Paxley gets in a knockdown, setting up an elbow to the back. Paxley’s jumping enziguri gets two and it’s time to crank on the arm. That’s switched into a triangle choke but Steele reverses into a sitout powerbomb for the break. Steele hits something like a Pounce and tries a fireman’s carry, only to have Paxley slip out and grab the Psycho Trap for the pin at 4:35.
Rating: C+. Steele continues to feel like she could be something with a good bit more time and experience, but her starting point is rather high in the first place. Getting her feet wet here is fine, but once she gets more of the hang of this, WWE very well might have something with her. The charisma along with the wrestling skill should be enough to carry her a long way and WWE seems to get that this early.
Shiloh Hill is ready for Riley Osborne. He has a plan, which involves three versions of hitting Osborne.
Riley Osborne vs. Shiloh Hill
Osborne grabs a hammerlock to start but Hill reverses into one of his own. Some leg trips don’t get Osborne very far so Hill is back up with a hard clothesline. The chinlock goes on for all of a few seconds before Osborne fights up but Hill drops him again. The double arm crank is broken up and Osborne gets two off a small package. Hill kicks him into the corner, with Osborne coming out with a dropkick. The shooting star press gives Osborne the pin at 5:37.
Rating: C+. Hill still feels like someone who could wind up being a player with enough experience and some fine tuning. He’s been getting more and more time around here and while he hasn’t won much, there is certainly something to him. Osborne is still one of the smoother stars around here and this worked well enough.
An unnamed man says he’s been having issues in recent weeks and asks OTM (I believe, as they’re shown from the back) to help him.
Malik Blade vs. Bronco Nima
Edris Enofe and Lucien Price are here too. Nima powers him down to start but misses a big boot, allowing Blade to kick away. Blade grabs a headlock but Nima is right back up with a standing stomp to take over. A right hand knocks Blade out to the floor and Nima takes him back inside to hammer away in the corner.
Nima plants him with a fireman’s carry flapjack for a delayed two and we hit the neck crank. Blade fights up and hits a running forearm into a running Blockbuster, setting up a high crossbody for two. Blade goes up but Price offers a distraction, allowing Nima to slam him down, only to have Blade reverse into a small package for the pin at 5:38.
Rating: B-. I liked the ending here as I don’t think I’ve ever seen that one done before. Blade and Enofe aren’t exactly on fire in the division but they can still do well enough in the ring to get by. Nima and Price aren’t doing that much better but I could go for seeing more from them. Good match here and one of the better around here in a bit.
Overall Rating: C+. It really is amazing how much better this show has been in the last few weeks. Just adding in a bit more effort and work to the show is an improvement as it makes the show feel that much more interesting. The wrestling itself was fine but there was enough stuff going on that I wanted to see more, which is a very nice feeling to have for a change. Nice show, with the chance that it could get better going forward.
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